Tag: Racing

While graded-stakes winners Special Reserve, Wondrwherecraigis and Pickin' Time figure to garner plenty of attention in Saturday's $150,000 Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash at Maryland's Laurel Park, Pocket 3's Racing's Threes Over Deuces will be flying under the radar – again.

The 7-year-old Flat Out gelding is entered to make his 46th career start in the six-furlong De Francis for 3-year-olds and up, which highlights an 11-race program featuring four stakes worth $450,000 in purses on the second of three Sizzling Saturdays in July at Laurel Park.

Threes Over Deuces owns seven wins, 14 seconds and nine thirds with $572,847 in purse earnings and has placed twice in graded-stakes since debuting in the 2017 First State Dash at Delaware Park, graduating next time out in an October 2017 waiver  maiden claimer at Laurel.

Trained throughout his career by Laurel-based Gary Capuano, Threes Over Deuces is a multiple stakes winner, having taken the 2020 New Castle at Delaware and 2021 Dave's Friend at Laurel. He has placed in nine other stakes on both turf and dirt, finishing second to Grade 1 winner Firenze Fire in Laurel's 2020 General George (G3).

“He runs with the best of the best around here,” Capuano said, “and he's run right with him. He always shows up. He might not quite get there or they might be a little bit too much for him some days, but he gives it his all. That's all we ask and the old boy just keeps plugging along, and he's happy right now. It's just about keeping him happy and good.”

In his most recent effort, Threes Over Deuces was unable to close at speed-favoring Penn National and ran fourth in the June 17 Chocolate Town to Ny Traffic, a multiple stakes winner that has placed in five graded-stakes including a second by a nose in the 2020 Haskell (G1) behind eventual 3-year-old male champion and Horse of the Year Authentic.

Threes Over Deuces was second to another multiple stakes winner, Maryland-bred Jaxon Traveler, in the six-furlong Maryland Sprint (G3) May 21 on the undercard of the 147th Preakness Stakes (G1) at historic Pimlico Race Course.

“He's a tough kind of horse. He has a lot of seconds and thirds, but he gives you 110 percent every time he runs,” Capuano said. “The race at Pimlico was a really good race; Jaxon Traveler was a little too much for him that day. He came to him turning for home but the other horse had too much left and that horse has got some class to him too, plus he's fast. It was another great effort.”

Capuano has not noticed a drop-off from Threes Over Deuces as he gets older. His multi-millionaire sire raced 29 times through his 7-year-old year, closing it with a victory in the 2013 Cigar Mile (G1).

“He's as enthusiastic as ever. He got a little heavy on us at one point, so we got his weight down a little bit where he looks really good now,” Capuano said. “He just keeps plugging along. He's got a bunch of seconds, but he keeps trying.

“He's pretty adaptable. If it doesn't look like there's a ton of speed in there, we can kind of send him out of there pretty good and try and get a decent position. He usually breaks well,” he added. “If the pace is hot, he can come from off the pace. He's pretty versatile. He'll do whatever, he just needs a little bit of luck sometimes – like they all do.”

Capuano opted to skip the De Francis with nominee Shackqueenking. Similarly owned by Pocket 3's, the gelded 4-year-old son of 2011 Preakness winner Shackleford has not raced since finishing fourth to Cordmaker in the Feb. 19 General George. Shackqueenking has run third in four stakes since capturing the 2020 Howard County in his juvenile finale.

“He's getting close. I threw him in there just to maybe kind of see if he was ready this weekend, but he's got another work or two before I think he's ready to go,” Capuano said. “He's getting fit and working pretty steady. We'll see what comes up for him. We'll try and find something a little easier to come back to.”

The post ‘Old Boy Just Keeps Plugging Along’: Threes Over Deuces May Trump Favorites In De Francis Dash appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Trainer Keri Brion will have three chances to secure a repeat victory in Wednesday's Grade 1, $150,000 A.P. Smithwick Memorial for older horses traveling 2 1/16-miles on the hurdle at Saratoga Race Course.

Brion enjoyed a stellar breakout year in 2021, sweeping all of NYRA's Grade 1 steeplechase events and all but one of America's top-level races over the hurdles. Last year, she conditioned The Mean Queen to champion Steeplechaser honors with a campaign that included a victory in the G1 Jonathan Sheppard Handicap at the Spa where she also finished second and third with Baltimore Bucko and French Light.

Baltimore Bucko gave Brion the victory in last year's Smithwick with a strong front-running performance under Thomas Garner. The win was the first Grade 1 for both Baltimore Bucko and Brion.

“It's so crazy,” Brion said of entering three top horses for a chance at another Smithwick. “These three are very good and I really don't know which one I'd choose. Their works last week were all really good.”

Leading Brion's Smithwick trio is the veteran gelding Iranistan, winner of the G2 Temple Gwathmey over multiple graded stakes-winner Snap Decision in April at Middleburg. The 8-year-old son of Einstein posted a close second in the 2018 running of the Smithwick for Hall of Fame conditioner Jonathan Sheppard and followed with a third in the G1 New York Turf Writers Cup [now the Jonathan Sheppard Handicap] the same year.

“Iranistan is fabulous,” Brion said. “He's been had some injuries so he's quite lightly raced, but he's in great form. He loves his job and loves to run and compete. He'll show up. To beat Snap Decision, he was at the top of his game.

“He breezes just as good as the young horses do,” added Brion. “We train them similarly to the flat horses because they have to run home that last straight. He can work three quarters in 1:15 in hand. He shows no signs of backing up or slowing down.”

Iranistan did not finish in his latest outing, struggling with a jump early in the G1 Iroquois on May 14 at Percy Warner where stablemate Historic Heart also did not finish.

“We didn't really have a great day for the Iroquois,” said Brion. “Our horses were too sharp for the course and had to relax and settle. We'll throw out that race. Both are doing good and I expect both to run really well.”

Iranistan, who was assigned the second-heaviest weight in the field at 152 pounds, will be ridden by Jack Doyle from post 7.

Historic Heart, a 5-year-old gelded son of Fracas, will make his Saratoga debut after winning the Carolina Cup Hurdle in April at Camden. Brion said distance limitations can be blamed for his last-out troubles in the three-mile Iroquois.

“He doesn't want three miles. He's a sharp, speedy type and Saratoga will suit him,” said Brion. “My stable jockey [Parker Hendriks] had his choice of the three and chose to ride him, and he's won on all three of these horses.”

Hendriks will ride Historic Heart [148 pounds] from post 4.

French Light, who finished a game runner-up in this event last year behind stablemate Baltimore Bucko, posted a dominating 5 1/4-length allowance victory going 2 3/8 miles at the Spa in 2020 before shipping to Ireland where he finished a close second in the INH Stallion Owners EBF Hurdle. The 7-year-old son of Muhtathir was last seen taking the Queens Cup on April 30 at Charlotte by three-quarters of a length after closing from last of four.

“He won his only start this year and runs his best races fresh,” said Brion. “He won a stake in April and he's been training really well for this. He loves Saratoga and hopefully can finish one better than last year.”

French Light will carry 144 as Harrison Beswick rides from post 5.

The Leslie Young-trained Pistol Whipped, who has been assigned a field-high 158 pounds, enters from a second to Snap Decision in the G1 Iroquois where he briefly lost position but battled back well to secure place honors 2 1/4-lengths ahead of third-place finisher Amschel. The son of Beneficial was a four-time winner in England prior to his American debut in the Iroquois.

Young will also saddle Grade 2-winner Redicean [144 pounds] as he looks for his second American graded stakes coup. He was last seen taking the G2 David Semmes Memorial on May 7 at Great Meadow. His lone victory at Saratoga came in 2019 in the restricted Jonathan Kiser Novice.

Pistol Whipped will be ridden by Nicolai DeBoinville from post 3 while Thomas Garner is tasked with the ride aboard Redicean from post 6.

Completing the field are Chief Justice [post 1, Barry Foley, 146 pounds] for trainer Cyril Murphy and the Kate Dalton-trained mare Down Royal [post 2, Bernard Dalton, 141 pounds].

The A.P. Smithwick is slated as Race 1 on Wednesday's 10-race card, which also features the $125,000 Suzie O'Cain in Race 9. First post is 1:05 p.m. Eastern.

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It was a long road to a comeback for 2019 Grade 2 Jim Dandy-winner Tax, but Gargan's patience was rewarded when the 6-year-old fan favorite returned after 532 days away from the races to post a two-length score in the Battery Park on July 9 at Delaware Park.

A dark bay Arch gelding, Tax had not raced since a distant 10th in the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Invitational in January 2021. He had been working steadily at Saratoga throughout the spring after recovering from a surgery on his sesamoid.

Gargan said he was proud of Tax's return front-running victory, which garnered a 98 Beyer Speed Figure.

“He's the barn favorite and he's our baby. It took a lot of patience. To run a 98 Beyer after 532 days is impressive,” said Gargan. “We'll try to figure out where to run him next. I've always wanted to run him on the grass, so there's a big chance for that. I'll start looking for something here in a week or so.”

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